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| A World Pool Without Water. Attika's watercolor on paper |
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| Worrywart. Cole's oil pastel on paper |
Do you go looking for inspiration or does it find you?
As a kid, I always looked forward to art day in school, which
would always fall on a Friday.
Friday was the best day of the week not only because it’s the last day of school,
it was also that one grand day when I would be freed from the cataclysmic
clutches of mathematics.
I wasn’t what you would call an artistic child, strangely,
in a family of artists. Both my sisters are great sketch artists -- one is now enjoying a career as a tattoo artist. My late brother was a budding painter and inventor. Two of my maternal uncles are painters. Two of my cousins from different sides of the family are award-winning artists.
On most Fridays of my life as a child, I celebrated convulsions of abstract expressionism—too abstract that no one, myself included, could explain nor interpret any of my artwork. It would be some sort of a "magical" experience for anyone looking at it. By magical I mean you could get lost looking at it, then you'd stay lost--that's it, just lost, stripped of all its poetic sense...for all eternity. But one day, I'm going to paint a cow. It's going to be so pretty it's going to look like a unicorn.
I did paint a unicorn a few months ago. Both my children looked at it and struggled to guess what it was they were looking at. “It’s a cow!” our three-year old finally blurted out.
On most Fridays of my life as a child, I celebrated convulsions of abstract expressionism—too abstract that no one, myself included, could explain nor interpret any of my artwork. It would be some sort of a "magical" experience for anyone looking at it. By magical I mean you could get lost looking at it, then you'd stay lost--that's it, just lost, stripped of all its poetic sense...for all eternity. But one day, I'm going to paint a cow. It's going to be so pretty it's going to look like a unicorn.
I did paint a unicorn a few months ago. Both my children looked at it and struggled to guess what it was they were looking at. “It’s a cow!” our three-year old finally blurted out.
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| One of my favorite spots at home |
Our thirteen-year-old has been too absorbed in his music since
last year so he’d choose his guitar over paint brushes and charcoal blocks
anytime. Our three-year-old, on the other hand, enjoys doing art and would
suddenly stop from whatever she’s doing to declare, “I want to paint!”
Do we have formal art classes? Yes and no. Mr. Young (dad,
boyfriend, sometimes husband, best friend, sous chef, carpenter, editor, so on
and so forth) is an artist. Sometimes he’d teach the kids some techniques in painting
and sketching, but they are not required to follow these techniques especially
if they have something else in mind that they want to paint, draw or create. We
have huge respect for self-expression when it comes to art. So a unicorn that
turns into a cow is a well-respected work of art in our household.
This week, art day was Tuesday. On some weeks it’s everyday.
cure for mondays is a top homeschooling philippine blog, best mommy blogger, top asia women's blog, best homeschool website, family issues blog, child stress, school work overload, sickly child, healthy diet for kids, manila mommy, art class, antipolo, oil pastel, watercolor
